Is Poker legal in Singapore?
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So, naturally there will be a lot of people who develop an interest in poker. As a result to that, they will be looking forward to being a poker player. But there is a lot of confusion when it comes to the legality of playing poker in Singapore.
Therefore, we hope that this article “Is Poker legal in Singapore?” will help to shed some light to clear the confusion.
Singapore Government's View On Gambling
In March 2022, Singapore Parliament passed a new law that legalized social gambling. This new law takes into effect on 1st August 2022. Social gambling is the act of casual gambling with friends and family at home.
So based on the new law, it is absolutely legal to play poker with friends and family at home on the pretext of social gambling.
Furthermore, the legal gambling age in Singapore is 21. Hence, anyone aged 21 and above can enter the 2 famous casinos in Singapore to play poker too.
All in all, poker is legal in Singapore. But you're only allowed to play at home, strictly with friends and family only too. Additionally, you are also allowed to play poker with anyone in licensed gambling centres in Singapore, which are Marina Bay Sands and Resort World Sentosa only.
However, the law is still unclear in terms of playing poker in an online casino Singapore.
Playing Online Poker In Singapore
Singapore government's view toward gambling is it's prohibited unless licensed or exempted. This applies to both online and offline. In a nutshell, the government discouraged gambling. But at the same time recognized that gambling is alright in a regulated and controlled environment.
This is where it gets confusing. As of today, the only online gambling service licensed by the government is Singapore Pools. It is a government-run company and it doesn't offer any poker games. In fact, Singapore Pools only offer sports betting and lottery.
So, technically online poker is illegal in Singapore. However, all of the online poker and casinos available to Singaporeans are not operating in Singapore. This is the main complication. Because it's not illegal for Singaporeans to gamble in a casino outside of Singapore.
It is totally legal for Singaporeans to drive all the way to Genting in Malaysia to gamble. So, technically it is also legal for them to play poker in an online casino that is outside of the country.
Moreover, there has not been any history of Singaporeans being charged for playing poker. Except for a few cases whereby some people were caught playing poker in public places or setting up an illegal casino inside a commercial premise.
Therefore, the legality of online poker in Singapore still remains unclear.
Since it's practically legal to play poker in the casino, there are surely people aspiring to be professional poker players. That's why we pulled together a simple guide on things you need to know about pro poker.
Tips To Be A Pro Poker Player
Build and manage your bankroll
Fortunately or unfortunately for some, poker is a high stake and emotional roller coaster game. You need a significantly large bankroll before you should even attempt to play. If your bankroll isn’t big enough, you will end up playing with “scared money”.
What that means is, that you will be playing with constant fear. And that you could lose it all with little hope to recover your losses. That fear will severely affect your performance. It will either make you risk-averse or make unnecessary mistakes under stress.
Hence, always build a sizeable bankroll first as your safety net. You need to do this before you even start playing poker full-time.
Once you’ve built your bankroll, keep it in a separate bank account. You need to have a clear division between personal money and gambling bankroll. Always play according to the size of your bankroll. Do not jump into high stake tables before your bankroll can sustain it. Play on low-stake tables first and work your way up.
Set goals and track your results
If you are going to play as a career, you need to treat your games like every other proper job. So like most organized jobs, you need set goals or Key Performance Indexes (KPI). Then track your results, and ensure you’re hitting your milestones.
If you’re missing your milestones, take a step back and analyze why you’re underperforming. Plan for corrective actions, seek help if necessary. Also, if you’re overperforming, don’t forget to reward and celebrate your achievement.
Pick your game and practice consistently
You may already realize by now, that there are multiple variants of poker games. If you’re just starting out, it’s best to pick one first and master it. But never ever neglect the other variants entirely. As the old saying goes, “Don’t put all your eggs into 1 basket”.
Poker trends change from time to time. Fortunately not that fast, so it’s alright to pour all your eggs into 1 basket at the beginning. But always remember to diversity after that. So when the trend shifts and another variant grew in popularity, it’ll be easy for you to adapt.
